Plans for £60 million waste recovery plant in Aberdeenshire

SITA UK, the recycling and waste management company are to submit a plan to develop a multi-million pound waste treatment plant in Aberdeenshire.

SITA will submit a Proposal of Application Notice (PAN) to Aberdeenshire Council outlining its plans for the plant as part of its contract to manage Aberdeenshire's waste for the next 15 years.

The proposed resource recovery park will incorporate a range of technology, including a mechanical biological treatment facility, in-vessel composting and a gasification plant.

The planned site is next to the existing Stoneyhill landfill site 1.5km west of Longhaven and 7km south west of Peterhead.

SITA says it will lead to the creation of 200 jobs during construction and 35 permanent operational jobs and will reduce the amount of residual waste sent to landfill by 70%.

At present, Aberdeenshire produces about 150,000 tonnes of household waste a year, out of which 50,000 tonnes is sent for recycling, while the remaining 100,000 tonnes is sent to landfill.

If SITA UK's plans are given the go-ahead, the amount of residual waste sent to landfill in the county is forecast to be reduced by about 70 per cent.

SITA UK's strategic development manager in Scotland, Martin Cracknell, said: "The issue of how we deal with Aberdeenshire's waste is something that affects all of us and is something that must be addressed if we are to meet Government targets.

"The Stoneyhill Resource Recovery Park represents an enormous amount of inward investment of approximately £60 million, with significant socio-economic benefits, including the creation of about 200 jobs during the construction phase, and a further 35 permanent jobs to operate the facilities at the park."

The company is arranging public exhibitions in the coming weeks, to inform and consult with the community about the plans.

Mr Cracknell said: "We appreciate that people will want to get involved and will have lots of questions, so we are very much looking forward to meeting with the community in the coming weeks, where we will explain our plans in more detail."

Waste plants have often attracted protests from communities worried about possible pollution from such facilities.

In the past anti-incinerator campaigner John Askey has led protests against plans to build a waste plant by Buchan Combined Heat and Power in the area. He has indicated on his website that he will oppose the plans by SITA UK. Alison Brown